‘This above all: to thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man.’ — Shakespeare

This is my early morning routine. I wake up. It’s around 4:00 am. I listen to my husband breathing softly next to me and feel America’s body cradled into my body. I smile. All is well, and with that, I slowly wrangle myself out of ‘our bed for three’ so as not to disturb my two guys, only to hear every morning the same words from my Ultimate Concierge, “Don’t leave.”

Guilt sets in, but not enough to pull me away because every morning I say to myself, “I’ve got a lot of living to do.” Not with the same robust enthusiasm I had before the virus, but still with a sense of urgency.

“You are not tiptoeing through the tulips, you are stopping along the way to make a bouquet. A bouquet of joy because you are authentic to yourself.”

Off to the kitchen I go…

I brew coffee, read the news on my iPhone,  turn on my Google Hub Max and say, “Hey Google, play soft music.” And then, I sit down and contemplate and ponder on what I am going to write. Sometimes, I wrack my mind, and other times the words spill out. I am all about “to thine ownself be true,” meaning I am an authentic storyteller.

Sometimes that is hard because I have gotten into trouble telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth! Big trouble. I’ll tell you about that in a minute. What holds me to the truth in my stories is partly to help you and partly to get it off my chest. Independence, being a free thinker, has always been an essential part of my personal key to survival. And it should also be yours.

You might like my story, The Importance of Being an Enlightened Woman.

Let Independence Be Your Key

 

Let independence be your key. Doesn’t the phrase sound refreshing? You can breathe into who you are. You are not tiptoeing through the tulips, you are stopping along the way to make a bouquet. A bouquet of joy because you are authentic to yourself.

Years ago, I got in trouble when I wrote a true story about a bully.  I named her Mrs. Bullyinski.  A few years after that I wrote a story about a Rabbi whose class was taken off the calendar because it made the Country club seem too Jewish! It was a Jewish Country club, and some of the members thought if they took the Rabbi’s name off of the calendar, they would get non-Jews to want a membership!

I was incensed over this and wrote a story never mentioning the name of the club or people. I questioned antisemitism within my club. The Gods came roaring down. I am proud to say because of my story the Rabbi’s name and class went back on the calendar and to this day remains four years later.

The moral of my stories is: Don’t give your power away. Let independence be your key. You can shed light.

And this takes me to today in Elsewhere.

I Ponder the News…

Last night having dinner at the bar at the Ritz, I turned to my Ultimate Concierge and said, “ I believe for the first time since the Virus struck, there is hope for humanity. Fearless citizens, mothers and fathers, teachers, doctors, small business owners, etc., are finally shouting loud enough to be heard. It is having an effect. The silent majority is no longer following.

And, then, today I read on my newsfeed an opinion by Woody Harrelson, the actor. He talks about the craziest script he read, “The ‘biggest drug cartels’ are forcing people to remain in their homes unless they agree to take and keep taking their drugs.”

The script:

“The biggest drug cartels in the world get together and buy up all the media and politicians and force people all over the world to stay locked in their homes. And, people can only come out if they take the cartel’s drugs and keep taking them over and over.” You all know what he is referring to: Covid 19, the Virus.

To my own self be true: I believe the light he shed is correct.

Observations

Being true to oneself comes up daily.

Be brave enough to trust your instincts. As a wizened woman after 50 you do know. Therefore, don’t be paralyzed by self-doubt. You can always give birth to a better version of yourself.

Never allow yourself to dissect your feelings. That should only be done in a laboratory setting where there is Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3, and bingo…you are ready for trial!

Use your powerful mindset. It is wizened at 50. You have your gut reaction, your funny feeling, and even your sneaking suspicions. Combine them with your intellect and push, go!

Make use of your attitude, aptitude, and inclinations to create a life that is rich, full, meaningful, and in today’s new world, manageable.

The moral of this story: Are you true to you or do you model yourself on what others think of you? Nobody remembers a copycat, least of all yourself.

If you enjoyed this story, please subscribe to my email list. When I post a new story, you will receive it in your inbox. You might also enjoy my post: Lavish in Resilience and Gratitude: Surviving Life in Elsewhere.

Are you true to yourself? Please share in the comments!